Wrench



E. E. THOMAS. WRENCH.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 13, 1919.

1,41 0,627 Patented Mar. 28, 1922.

narran srarss .EDWIN E. THOMAS, OF FORTLA'ND, OREGON; ASSIGNOB TO VILLIAM GORDON, 'OF

- 1- 'Ul\TIOlq',l NEW JERSEY. Y

WRENCH.

Miene?.

To all whom t may concern.' v .Be it known that'I, EDWIN E. THOMAS, a citizen of the United States, and a resident ofPortland, in the county of Multnomah, State offOregon, have invented new and useful Improvements in W'renches, ,of which ythe following is a specification.

rI`his invention relates to and .has for a principal' object the provision of Van improved type of: wrench in whichthe adjustable jaw may bevprimarily adjusted in the right hand to a desiredextent by the pressurefof a finger Aand thereafter more closely adjusted by the usual thumb screw, or nut. A further object. of my invention is'to provide a wrench having a fixed andamovable jaw, together with means for moving the adjustable jaw relative to said fixed aw for contracting land expanding the wrench, and .means for quickly releasing said adjustable jaw whereby the wrench may be expanded to a desired extent by 'a' pressure of a linger, means being provided for automatically restoring said adjusting means and the other parts to normal operating positions.

Another object is to provide in a wrench of the character referred to, a xed jaw having a handle thereon and a movable jaw slidably supported on said fixed jaw and provided with a screw adjustment for regulating the spacing of said jaws and means for releasing said screw adjustment from said movable jaw, whereby the jaws of the wrench may be expanded to a maximum ex,- tent at a single operation, thus facilitating the use of the wrench. Other objects may appear in the subjoined detail description of the operation and structure of my improved wrench.

In the drawings forming a part of this application and hereto annexed, I have shown a preferred embodiment of my invention with certain novel details of construction and arrangement of parts, similar characters of reference being employed through out the specification and in the several views of the drawings for indicating the same and like parts. In *saidv drawings:

Fig. l is a side elevation of my wrench, partly in section.

Fig. 2 is an end view of the same, Y

Fig. 3 is a plan, or upper edge View of the same,

Fig. i is a partial bottom view, partly in section,

Specification of LettersPatent. PgrQHQ-d Mgu,

' rApplication filed June 13, 191,9. Serial No. 305,207. Y

Fig, 5 is a section on line 5-5 of Fig. l,

Fig. Gis a fragmentary side view of the fixed jaw,

Fig. 7 is a side view ofthe movable jaw,

Fig. 8 is a rear View of said movable jaw.

My improved wrench comprises a stock, or body mem-ber B, with a handle l, substantially extended therefrom and disposed at an angle relative thereto, a movable member M, slidably held on thebody B, and an operating device O, carried in the body B, as clearly shown in Fig. l. Body B, has a fixed jaw J, integrally formed thereon at the front and top thereof, and a pair of vertical channels 2 and 3, are formed on each side of and extend from top to bottom of the body, the channels 2, being of slightly less depthA than the channels 3.

, The movable member M, has a jaw J. formed thereon at the front and a vertical portion 4', at the rear of said jaw, which is recessed as at 5, to conform to the cross section of the body B, so that the portions 5 and 5b of said recess will engage thebottoms of the channels 2 and 3 in the body B. Thus the movable jaw member M may be slidably positioned on the fixed member B by moving the recessed portion thereof over the channeled portion of member B. After the member M is placed in position on member B, a screw 6 and a washer 7 may be attached to the bottoms of the member B, as shown in Fig. l, for limiting the downward movement of the jaw member M on the member B, and preventing the removal of the same from said member B.

Member B has a central recess 8', formed therein, which is of greater width at the top than at the bottom, and I provide in said recess a leverL, which is adapted to be pivotally held at the bottom by means of a piu 9, extending through the body B, and the upper end of said lever is bent rearwardly and upwardly from the body and is substantially extended from the recess 8 so that the same may be moved backward from the normal position shown in full lines to the position indicated in broken lines in Fig. 1 by the pressure or pull of a linger. A screw S, is loosely held on the lever L, in a curved aperture l0, formed in the body B, and the threads ll of said screw are adapted to engage similar threads 12 formed in the rear side of the member M, as vshown in Fig. 8. It will be apparent that the turning of the screw S on the lever L, will effect a vertical movement of the member M, on the body member B, for expanding or contracting the jaws of the wrench.

l/Vhen lever L is moved baclrwardly from normal position by a short and quick movement of the finger, the screw S, will be disengaged from the threads oi member M, and said member will drop by gravity, thus expanding the jaws of the wrench to a maximum or desired extent, approximating the desired spacing of the jawsJ and J, and when the pressure on lever L is released, a plunger P, held in a bore 13 formed in a lug 14 on the bottom of member B and against the lower end of said lever by means of a spring 15 in said bore, will cause said lever and screw S to be restored to normal position. Thereafter the screw S, may be turned by the thumb or linger for a iine Yor close adjustment of the jaws J and J. Spring 15 is held in tension between the end of the plunger P and a pin 16, attached to the lug 14, as shown in Fig. 4.

It will be observed that the tongue 17 of the bodyl B, which is of T cross section is engaged by the upwardly extended sides of the member M, and the lower portion of member M completely envelops said tongue thus providing a locked tongue and groove connection which affords a maximum strength and yet permits a free movement of the member M on member B.

The details of my wrench may be altered and modified within the scope of the appended claim, without departing from the spirit or enlarging the scope of my invention.

Vhat I claim is: Y

A wrench as shown and described comprising a handle bar provided at one end with a head port-ion having a fixed jaw and having guide channels in each side of said jaw and a curved aperture, a slidable member having opposed portions around said headand fitting into said channels and having a fixed jaw portion thereon to move therewith, a spindle pivoted at its lower end and extended through said curved aperture and projecting through said head for manual movement, a screw on said spindle, in said curved aperture and having operative engagement with said slidable member, said screw being adapted to be turned on said spindle to move said slidable member, and a spring actuated plunger normally holding said screw and spindle in operative engagement with said slidable member, substantially as described.

Signed at Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon, this third day of June, 1919.

EDWIN E. THOMAS.

In presence of l ANTOINETTE WAGNER, WILLDA WEEKS. Y 

